1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for controlling driving of an air curtain fan based on a temperature inside a refrigerating compartment of a refrigerator and a temperature outside a refrigerating compartment thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In regard to a refrigerating cycle, when a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant gas generated by an compressor passes through a condenser it changes into a high pressure liquid refrigerant by discharging heat outside. Then, the high pressure liquid refrigerant passes through a dryer to remove impurities and water included therein and is supplied to a capillary tube. The liquid refrigerant passed through the capillary tube is expanded into an evaporable gas-liquid mixing state and is fed to an evaporator. The refrigerant in a evaporable gas-liquid mixing state absorbs a peripheral heat and returns to an original state so that the circulation of the cool air repeats.
Currently, during the operation of a refrigerator, an overload is applied to an inside of the refrigerating compartment or external air flows to the inside of the refrigerating compartment by an open door so that the temperature inside a refrigerating compartment increases. In the case described above, in order to recover the temperature inside the refrigerating compartment to a normal state, an air curtain fan is additively disposed inside the refrigerating compartment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,332 (issued to Seong S. Park on Nov. 23, 1997) discloses a temperature control method for use in a refrigerator which enhances cooling efficiency by promptly restoring a variation of a load temperature caused by an open door. The patent of Seong S. Park includes a normal operation step for controlling a compressor and a fan to maintain a temperature inside a refrigerating compartment between a positive limit temperature and a negative limit temperature, both derived from a set temperature input by a user; a door-open is detected; a reset temperature setting step for setting a reset temperature based on the door-opening time; and a reset temperature operation step for executing a cooling operation by driving a compressor and a fan until the temperature inside the refrigerating compartment decreases to the reset temperature, lower than the set temperature, if it is desired during the normal operation that the reset temperature has been reset. The method enhances the refrigerating efficiency of a refrigerator by promptly restoring the temperature of food contained in the refrigerating compartment which has risen by external air flowing into the refrigerating compartment as a result of an open door.
Hereinafter, a conventional apparatus 10 for controlling a driving of an air curtain fan will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 shows a conventional apparatus for controlling a driving of an air curtain fan. The conventional apparatus 10 includes a temperature detector 102, a compressor 104, a compressor driver 106, a refrigerating fan 108, a refrigerating fan driver 110, an air curtain fan driver 112, and a control section 114.
The temperature detector 102 detects a temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment under the control of the control section 114. The detected temperature T.sub.I inside the refrigerating compartment is applied to the control section 114. The compressor 104 generates a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant gas. The compressor driver 106 controls a driving of the compressor 104. The refrigerating fan 108 blows a cool air supplied by an evaporator (not shown) into a refrigerating compartment. The refrigerating fan driver 110 controls a driving of the refrigerating fan 108. The air curtain fan driver 112 controls a driving of the air curtain fan 100.
The control section 114 controls an operation of a temperature detector 102, a compressor driver 106, and a refrigerating fan driver 110, an air curtain fan driver 112 The control section 114 executes the normal cool operation by driving a compressor 104 and a refrigerating fan 108 via a compressor driver 106 and a refrigerating fan 110, and judges whether the detected temperature T.sub.I inside the refrigerating compartment from the temperature detector is a normal temperature.
An operation of the conventional air curtain fan driving apparatus will not be illustrated. FIG. 2 is a flow chart for performing the conventional apparatus for controlling a driving of an air curtain fan in FIG. 1.
Electric power is supplied to respective units, the control section 114 executes the normal cool operation (step S201) by driving a compressor 104 and a refrigerating fan 108 via a compressor driver 106 and a refrigerating fan 110. In step S202, the temperature detector 102 detects a temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment under the control of the control section 114. The detected temperature T.sub.I inside the refrigerating compartment is applied to the control section 114.
In step S203, the control section 114 judges whether the the detected temperature T.sub.I inside the refrigerating compartment from the temperature detector 102 is a normal temperature T.sub.N. As a result of the judgement in step S203, when it is judged that the temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment is not the normal temperature T.sub.N, the compressor driver 106 drives the compressor 104 under the control of the control section 114 (step S204).
Subsequently, the refrigerating fan driver 108 and the air curtain fan driver 112 drive the refrigerating fan 108 and the air curtain fan 100 under the control of the control section 114, respectively (step S205). In step S206, the control section again judges whether the detected temperature T.sub.I inside the refrigerating compartment from the temperature detector is the normal temperature.
As a result of the judgement in step S206, when it is judged that the temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment is not the normal temperature, the routine returns to step S204.
On the other hand, when the temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment is the normal temperature in step S206, or when it is judged that the temperature T.sub.I inside a refrigerating compartment is the normal temperature, the control section executes a normal operation (step S207) and the entire operation finishes.
In accordance with the conventional method, when a door is opened, an air curtain is driven regardless of the temperature inside a refrigerating compartment or the temperature outside temperature. Accordingly, the air curtain fan is driven beyond need so that electric power is unnecessarily wasted.